


Orange Is The New Black

by Lady_Iwaizumi



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Banana Fish Manga Spoilers, Boarding School, Bromance, Crimes & Criminals, Crying, Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends, Family Fluff, Fighting, Friendship, Gangs, Gen, Happy Ending, Hugging, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Laughter, Light Angst, Nightmares, OR IS IT, Past Sexual Abuse, Reform School, Secrets, Sexual Humor, Swearing, mentioned sexual abuse, no homo tho, shorter is so cool, smile ash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2018-11-27
Packaged: 2019-08-28 05:06:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16717093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Iwaizumi/pseuds/Lady_Iwaizumi
Summary: The in-between months at reform school where the friendship of Shorter Wong and Ash Lynx was solidified through late night talks, yard fights and never-ending nightmares; even wild street thugs can admit their cell mate would look good in orange.The story of how Shorter and Ash became the ultimate bromance





	Orange Is The New Black

**Author's Note:**

> Have yet to read the manga of Banana Fish or Angel Eyes because I have no money, but I'm really into this series because it reminds me so much of my own angsty work!!! Enjoy, and please leave a comment, kudos or bookmark for later!!!  
> With love,  
> Bodhi
> 
> p.s. Fic takes place after the assassination attempt on Ash, before Shorter is released.

Ash was sick and tired of being cooped-up at reform school. Shorter could tell this much, despite not having known the kid for very long; he saw it in the way he fidgeted nervously during their long hours of “reflecting time,” he saw it in the way Ash started picking fights for no reason other than to get a good workout, and he heard it at night, when the skinny blonde kid on the bunk above his own would whimper and toss and turn throughout a never-ending nightmare, only to wake-up and act like nothing happened when morning came. Shorter could read people as easily as he could read a book—and yes, he _could_ _read_ , unlike a lot of the mindless punks at this stupid reform prison, and despite how much higher Ash Lynx’s intelligence level was compared to his own, Shorter thought it fascinating that the wild beast was so easy to read. His actions, maybe, were more difficult to predict, on account on his diabolical riskiness, but as for his every day thought process?

Well…Shorter watched Ash often. He was, more or less, the only remotely interesting thing about reform school.

“Yo,” Shorter greeted as the wildcat came strolling towards him coolly from across the yard.

“Hey,” Ash nodded shortly. A nod was the best greeting you could receive. “What’s new in this hellhole?”

“The romance continues,” The Chinaman motioned as the blonde sat down beside him on the bench. “I think they’ll be holding hands by the end of the week.”

After the excitement of the assassination attempt, Shorter and Ash had found little entertainment in everyday reform school life, but there was one storyline that caught their attention like a good soap opera; two other boys in their block, maybe around fourteen or fifteen were making a romantic relationship for themselves within the cold blocks of the school. They were both sentenced to a year’s worth of time, and throughout the first three months, Shorter noticed them sneaking glances at each other in the lunchroom often. When he told Ash about his theory of them being lovers, the lynx simply shrugged.

“Better they do it at their own free will,” He had mumbled.

Shorter heard rumors about the two boys, and he also heard rumors about his cellmate, Manhattan’s finest Ash Lynx, the untamable cat who was under the thumb of crime boss Dino Golzine, the man who refused to pay Ash’s bail this time around. Of course, everyone on the streets knew about Dino’s… _preferences_ , but it wasn’t until Shorter entered reform school and met his new cellmate that he came to understand the depth of Dino’s sadistic, perverted tendencies. Ash was a walking example of the rumors, and whenever Shorter brought up the subject of homosexuality, he watched his cellmate’s expression very carefully, only to find that it never changed much. Ash’s narrowed emerald eyes glanced across the yard at the two boys standing closely together at the fence, a huff escaping his lips.

“What happens in this episode?” Ash joked.

“Blonde Dreadlocks will make a shy, timid move to grasp Toothless Wonder’s hand,” Shorter theorized thoughtfully. “Blonde D’s move will be accepted, and they’ll celebrate their newest relationship accomplishment by having _wild_ sex in their cell after lights off.”

“Remind me to plug my ears tonight.”

Shorter laughed that cool laugh of his, getting a tiny smile from Ash in the process. He tried several styles of humor in hopes of making Ash laugh for once, but his success rate was limited to a smile here and there; he kept trying, however, turning his tilted lips in the blonde’s direction as the sun flittered down onto their short-sleeved forms, their backs resting against the bench casually. No one messed with them after the whole Arthur assassin incident—truthfully, it made juvie pretty damn boring. All they had time to do now was sit around and talk when they weren’t at class or making bets with other kids on how gross the lunch would be that day. Shorter understood why Ash never stopped tapping his foot, never stopped scheming within his dark mind…never the less, he tried to keep his own mind occupied by entertaining Ash with mild conversation topics.

“Man, I can’t wait until I get the hell out of here,” Shorter sighed, leaning his head back so the sun heated his neck. “Don’t get me wrong, I love spending hours upon hours doing nothing with you, Ash, but I’m losing a bunch of opportunities being stuck in here like some rat. You know what the first thing I’m going to do is?”

“Eat Chinese food?”

“ _Yes_.” Shorter stressed, legs kicking into the air. “I’ve never hated American food so much—I would commit murder for some roasted duck right now. I would kill _you_ for some roasted duck right now.”

“I’ll keep that in mind when I’m sleeping tonight,” Ash replied dryly. It had taken them a good three-months for Shorter to be able to joke about murder and not have his cellmate peek his head over the bunk every hour after the fact… “How’s your sister’s restaurant doing?”

“Not too shabby, although I’m sure she wishes her little bro were there to wait on customers for her.”

“Don’t kid yourself.”

Sometimes Shorter had to peer deep into Ash’s eyes to figure out if he was joking or not; this was one of those rare occasions, and Shorter released another quick laugh before Ash saw him looking. They brought their attention back to the soap opera, Ash snorting when the boys ended-up holding hands as his cellmate predicted—the sight got Shorter thinking again, thinking back to all the rumors he heard about the lynx of Manhattan, how he was too easy, how he had been trained by Golzine to be a cockslut to anyone willing to pay…everyone at reform school believed what they heard, too. _Especially_ after the entire sleeping with Ricardo incident. Lots of the other boys wanted to have a piece of Ash after that, only to have their nuts crushed in when they approached Shorter’s cellmate, their friendly propositions shoved so far up their asses it became clear to everyone that Ash wasn’t going to let any of these losers have a _smidge_ of the pieces that were left inside his chest. Shorter heard every last rumor about the blonde, and yet, there were only a few he knew to be true, only a handful he believed.

What set him aside from everyone else who thought Ash was just a seductive, wild creature who could only be tamed through betrayal and sex?

For starters, Shorter wasn’t gay. He didn’t feel anything intimate towards any other guy aside from brotherly love, like with the members of his gang back in Chinatown. Ash made the point once that there had been lots of “totally not gay” men that used him for sex, but Shorter didn’t find that appealing in the slightest. Nadia lectured him often about how to treat girls he liked, to never look for desire first, to not push them even if he wanted to kiss them, etc. etc., and all those lectures carried over to how Shorter treated Ash; he never pushed the bad tempered blonde too far, never nosed in on his business unless it screamed danger, and he _definitely_ never went for an intimate move, no matter how pent-up his teenage desires were after being stuck in reform school for months on end.

It was too bad Ash didn’t know that, though. After what happened with Arthur’s assassin, Shorter really thought Ash would warm-up to him, and he did, but only to a certain extent. That was when Shorter realized that some of the rumors about his dangerous cellmate had to be true—the severity of Ash’s distrust with people had to be rooted from a darker part of his heart, and Shorter wanted to get to that part, if not because Ash would make a terrible, hard-hearted enemy, then because Shorter thought the kid was just fucking cool. The way he carried himself despite his shadowed past was legendary. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with the toughest person in the entire world?

“What are you going to do when you get out?” The taller boy asked, not looking directly at Ash, but picturing him through the bright sunlight beams. There was a moment of tense silence before Ash grumbled a partial answer. Shorter actually knew exactly what Ash would be doing after he got out: lying on a bed in Golzine’s mansion somewhere as an older fuck crawled up the mattress, a video camera rolling on the side…he asked because he hoped Ash would amuse him with a lighter, less depressing answer.

“I don’t know,” He replied in a sigh. “Probably gunna eat some Chinese food.”

“Haha! Damn right!”

The afternoon bell rang, earning groans from at least forty boys in the yard as they all shuffled their way towards the building entrance; Shorter and Ash were the last to go, eyeing the soap opera couple as they separated themselves and got in line.

“If this was a mixed reform school, I’d definitely do that with my girlfriend,” Shorter smirked. “To hell with what Nadia says, we’re making out if she tells me yes!”

“If this was a mixed reform school I wouldn’t have been sent here,” Ash hummed.

“Well we can’t have that—who would I have to tease all day long? Forget girls—I’d take you as my ally any day, Ash.”

The taller Chinese boy was stopped abruptly before he could enter, five thin, agile fingers wrapped tightly around his forearm and preventing him from moving forward. Shorter looked over in question, coming face to face with those terrifying emerald orbs that were bearing into his own dark eyes with suspicion and a bit of awe; free emotion was a common thing with Ash, but not in this kind of style. This was another moment of vulnerability Shorter was set to witness, to cherish the moment where he knew Ash’s concept of trust was entirely in his hands. The lynx’s lips opened, but didn’t speak for a second.

“Oy,” A guard grumbled ahead of them. “Move it or lose it.”

“…Really?” Ash asked quietly, voice fierce. “Do you mean that?”

“Of course I mean it,” Shorter said slowly, deliberately. His eyes never wavered. “Why would I lie to you?”

Ash reacted like that response had slapped him in the face. Those blonde eyebrows lifted high, even as the guard tugged them inside; Shorter always said nice things like that to Ash…it was as suspicious as it was comforting, but Ash just couldn’t shake the sincere feeling he got whenever his cellmate spoke. Were all Chinamen so honest? Ash guessed most of them were, judging on how happy Shorter was whenever he returned from a visit with his sister Nadia—even now, as they were being ordered around by guards here and there, Ash almost opened his mouth and shouted a thank-you to Shorter for his words. To anyone else, that conversation would be a forgetful one, but for Ash, whom everyone lied about and lied to…

_“Why would I lie to you?”_

_Why indeed_ , Ash thought later that day, when he and Shorter were eating their nasty lunches at their empty table. _Well, there’s the obvious reasons: he could lie to get close to Golzine, he could lie to get close and kill me in my sleep per Arthur’s orders…the other reasons could be…what? He wants to get some? Reform school has him uncontrollably horny? It’s possible. But wouldn’t he have made a move before this if that were the case?_

“Alright,” Shorter said beside him. He slowly turned his trey in Ash’s direction, eyebrows cocked. “I don’t usually make sexual food jokes, but…this looks too much like a dick for me to _not_ point it out.”

 _No. He can’t possibly want to sleep with me_ , Ash internally sighed, nodding at Shorter’s oddly shaped potatoes. _He would have done that already, and then I would’ve had to kick his ass. What else could he be playing at?_

 

For one of the first times in his short life, Ash didn’t understand. Whenever he thought of Shorter Wong, all he saw was not betrayal and evil, but a dorky, colorful Chinatown punk kid who could turn dangerous in a split second. Maybe that was what made him so confusing—who ever heard of a Chinaman with an honest smile and knife wielding hands?

 

Another month of reform school passed, and subtly, very subtly, Shorter could sense a change in Ash Lynx. It wasn’t obvious, and it wasn’t straightforward like everything else about the blonde, but a type of transformation was beginning to take form. Ash never had a friend before, aside from Griffin, and he had no clue what it entailed, didn’t know how to start—luckily, Shorter was a friendly, talkative guy, and Ash found himself being pulled into interesting conversations more and more. To be fair, Shorter had always been interesting; it just took his roomie a while to let his guard down and notice. Christmas was coming soon, which meant another visit from Nadia, which meant Shorter would be frantically changing his routine to one of more cleanliness, telling Ash “she would know” if he was just covering his tracks. And so, in the cold months nearing December, Ash observed Shorter slipping neatness into his routine, and was greatly amused by it.

“Do you think she’ll notice if my clothes are wrinkled?”

“Everyone’s clothes are wrinkled here,” Ash sighed.

“Well yeah, but I think I might have told her that I use an iron once a week—she’ll know I’m lying! _Again_!”

“Then quit lying to her, dumbass.”

“Cleaning is so stressful,” Shorter heaved dramatically, throwing his duster on the floor. “Let’s get to sleep.”

“That’s what I said ten minutes ago,” Ash mumbled lightly to himself. The taller boy shut the light off and crawled into his bunk underneath Ash, squirming around for a few minutes until he found a good spot; this was their nightly routine, unless one of them had something on their mind—this was the case tonight, for right as Shorter closed his eyes and exhaled, Ash spoke above him.

“Shorter.”

“Hm?”

“Do you think those boys like holding hands?”

That wasn’t what Shorter was expecting to hear. His eyes opened immediately, staring at the mattress above as if he could see Ash’s puzzled face through it.

“Well…I don’t think they would do it if they didn’t,” Shorter shrugged. Darkness overcame their cell as all the other lights were switched off for the night. “That’s the kind of romantic urges people get when they like each other.”

“How do you know?” Ash continued. How long had he been pondering this thought? “Have you ever done it?”

“…A few times, yeah.” The Chinese boy answered. “I had a girlfriend back in Chinatown when I was twelve. She was a real cutie, way too good for me; we held hands when we walked home from school together.”

Ash didn’t comment on that memory. Since he hadn’t experienced such an innocent feeling, he dared not judge Shorter’s understanding. Golzine had never held his hands, and he was a pervert—weren’t perverts always under the illusion that their victims were in love with them? Why hadn’t Golzine ever attempted such a feat? Not that Ash wanted him to in the _slightest_ , but maybe it was a nice sensation. Those two boys seemed to enjoy the simple touch whenever they walked the yard together…

Then again, maybe Ash just didn’t understand love.

“Do you think they’re in love?” He asked out-loud, cursing himself after the fact.

“I don’t know, man.” Shorter sighed deeply. “Aren’t you too young to love at that age? I mean, don’t get me wrong, they seem to like each other a lot, but…I don’t know. I’ve never been in love, so I couldn’t tell you what it’s like.”

Ash went quiet after that, reflecting on his inability to understand the simplest of emotions. The hallways were quieter than usual, easing the boys into a sleepy trance as they laid on their beds, hushed breaths passing between them.

“Goodnight, blondie.”

“Night, Shorter.”

Shockingly, Ash fell asleep rather easily after that. Shorter did, too, snoring loudly and annoying the other boys who were still awake, but Ash didn’t mind too much; the noise gave a good background clutter to his troubling thoughts. The winter night was calm and cool until the early hours of the morning arrived, upon which Shorter was jerked awake by a familiar, bone chilling alarm—Ash’s panicked, horrified shouts, to be exact.

Although the blonde would never admit to it, he was haunted by nightmares constantly, and over the past few weeks they had grown progressively worse. Maybe the reminder of Christmas and happy themes triggered trouble, or maybe it was just the idea of returning to Golzine’s hell after his time was over; either way, Shorter had noticed a difference between Ash’s sleepy cries for help, and tonight, they favored a more whiney, frightened tone.

“No—n-no!” Ash cried out, alarming several other boys down the hall as Shorter sat up in a hurry. “Stop…stop…please! Help! H- _Help_!!!”

“Ash,” Shorter said softly, jumping onto his bare feet. “Ash, it’s okay!”

“Hurts…it _hurts_ , it _hurts_ …”

The words turned into sobs as Ash’s body convulsed with agony, hands grasping aggressively at body parts Shorter would rather not mention; he learned the hard way that touching Ash when he was sleeping or having a nightmare usually resulted in several bruises and cracked bones, so to avoid sending his roommate into a total panic, Shorter continued to call his name gently, leaning closely on the bed railing.

“Ash. Ash, wake up—Ash!”

No matter how many times Shorter woke-up to this sight, the image of Ash Lynx, tough as nails and three-times as sturdy, sobbing and crying in his bed, hot tears streaming out of his crunched eyes still shot thorns through the Chinaman’s heart. He let his hand hover over Ash, but refrained from touching him and continued his hushed method of calling Ash’s name as softly as possible.

“Ash…Ash, it’s okay…”

“N-NO…No…”

“Ash. It’s me, Shorter—wake up. Come on, buddy, wake up…”

Finally, _finally_ , after a good ten-minutes of coaxing, Ash’s subconscious seemed to hear Shorter’s pleading tone. Those alarmed and terrified green eyes shot open wildly, like a cat startled by something entering its den in the middle of hibernation. Shorter immediately withdrew his hands, showing he meant no harm as his roomie sat up in a hurry, almost smoking his head on the ceiling in the process; his pale skin was clammy with sweat all the way down to his lower back, and since Ash hadn’t taken his jeans off before falling asleep, the pants were riding low on his thin figure, giving the illusion to a dirty image he was terrified to see again. Hadn’t he woken up? Why was he lying on a bed? Hadn’t that been part of the nightmare? Why was it still happening? Against his will, Ash’s lungs began to flutter in a panic, quick breaths escaping his cracked lips like they couldn’t taste the oxygen desperately wedging its way inside—

“Ash.”

The smaller boy whipped his head right, startled by the sudden appearance of a tall bald guy standing at his bedside…

 _Oh. Right. Shorter_ , Ash’s thoughts remembered. _Shorter Wong…my roommate at reform school…reform school…that’s where I am. Not at Dino’s. Not with Foxx…Shorter. But why is he here?_

“Ash,” Shorter repeated calmly. “Can you hear me?”

Ash nodded somehow, heartbeat slowing down at a gradual pace.

“Good…um…are you—are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah,” The other boy answered shakily, mentally cursing himself for showing weakness. “Sorry.”

Shorter knew the nightmare must have been _really_ bad tonight, because Ash never said sorry unless his head was jumbled-up. Never the less, he nodded understandingly, remaining by the bedside for the next few minutes as his roommate struggled to recover from the latest episode; Shorter tried not to stare, lest it should aggravate Ash further, but it was hard doing nothing when it was so painfully obvious Ash needed _something_. His entire body would tremble head to toe after waking, his eyes would be blown back from shock, his overall attitude would make Shorter want to vomit from the sickening images the poor kid saw over and over as he tried to sleep… _I wish I could help him_ , Shorter thought for the hundredth time, watching Ash wipe the sweat off his brow. _Please, Ash—I just want to help. Why won’t you let me?_

The Chinaman knew why, of course, not to the full extent, but he saw how dangerous the damage from sexual abuse could be. His roommate could actually be classified as unstable if the damn kid wasn’t so stubborn; Shorter wished he could provide a better type of help, therapy or something, _anything_ if it meant erasing that blank, horrified gaze from Ash’s face whenever he woke from a nightmare. Minutes passed, the hallway silent, allowing Shorter to listen carefully, searching for a break in the wall surrounding Ash, to no avail. The blonde finally remembered how tough he was supposed to act and looked over at Shorter with a pitiful glare that was meant to show malice.

“What’re you still standing there for?” Ash mumbled, wiping at his forehead.

“Just making sure you’re okay, dude.”

“I’m fine.”

“I don’t mean ‘okay’ by your definition—I meant by my own.”

Shorter didn’t back down from the lynx’s narrowed eyes. He kept his gaze calm, free of any evil intentions that might trigger his roomie into another chaotic trance; Ash decided to respond without words, turning back over on his side with a pout, though he didn’t close his eyes right away. The memories were too fresh to risk any replays. Seeing their conversation was mostly over, Shorter sighed and slid back into his own bed, loosely pulling the covers up as he stared up the dusty underside of Ash’s mattress.

“Ash.”

No response.

“You know…you have nightmares a lot,” Shorter continued anyway, voice laced with kindness. “For what it’s worth, I think you should see one of the nurses about it. They might be able to help you get some sleep at night, you know?”

The mattress creaked, but Ash still kept silent.

“Even if you don’t get help, I’ll be right down here if you wanna talk. We don’t even have to talk, actually—we can just sit and…be there. Catch my non-homo drift?”

Shorter thought the frequent mention of him being straight would gain Ash’s trust, but the boy above him didn’t reply with even a whisper, leaving the other to sigh again and close his eyes tiredly.

“Goodnight, Ash. Wake me up if you have another nightmare, okay?”

A good half-hour later, just before Shorter fell asleep, he swore he heard a soft voice from above send down a whisper.

“ _Goodnight_.”

~~~-~~~

Weeks passed like usual in reform school, Ash kept having nightmares, the bells kept ringing obnoxiously, and soon enough, Shorter’s sister Nadia came down for a visit. Shorter had been talking about her non-stop, wondering what she was going to bring him, if she would bring Chinese food (he was having serious withdrawals and went on a hunger strike that lasted five-hours), etc. etc. Ash would have been annoyed, but this was the most excitement he felt in a while, so he allowed Shorter to tell him all about the last presents Nadia got him when he wasn’t at reform school; he suspected she wouldn’t get him one at all this year, since he had been “a naughty Chinese boy,” but Shorter still hoped for the best.

“Oh man, she’s gunna be here really soon!” The taller boy wailed and he and Ash exited their final class of the day. “Do I smell bad? Do you think she’ll notice and lecture me again?”

“Yes.”

“Yes to _what_?!”

“All of the above,” Ash smirked, allowing Shorter to curse at him underneath his breath.

“Man…I haven’t seen her in almost five-months,” Shorter continued, tone becoming more serious. “I hope she doesn’t have a boyfriend or anything. Jeezuz, Ash—what if she’s engaged to some prick?! What the hell am I gunna do about it if I’m stuck in here?! She’ll be married and pregnant by the time I get out!”

“Don’t worry so much—you’ll go bald.”

“Haha, very funny, Ash,” Shorter rolled his eyes while rubbing at the top of his already shaved head. “I’m totally serious about this; I worry about Nadia a lot. Who’s gunna protect her out there? The Lee’s say they look after everyone, but…I don’t know. Do they really care about her like I do?”

“No,” Ash replied casually, throwing himself onto Shorter’s bed so he didn’t have to crawl up onto his own. “That’s why you should be on your best behavior.”

“Pf. Like that matters,” Shorter scoffed, sitting down on the chair in their room. He was quiet for a few seconds, reflecting on his reform school sentence so far. “She’ll be _so_ pissed when I tell her about Arthur…but telling her I made a friend might balance it out. What do you think?”

“Friend?” His roommate repeated with a scowl. He stopped shaking his leg to stare over at Shorter, expression darker than ever. “What friend?”

“Are you _serious_ right now, Ash-hole?”

“What?”

Ash was genuinely pissed-off that his roommate was referring to another guy he met at reform school. Why hadn’t he heard about this?

“ _You_ ,” Shorter pointed in exasperation. “ _You’re_ the friend, dummy!”

Ash’s expression changed from one of suspicion to one of genuine surprise. He looked from Shorter’s finger back to the Chinaman’s face, spotting the honesty through the shaded sunglasses; when he first roomed with Shorter, he always thought those shades were to prevent enemies from reading his expression, like in a poker game or something…but with how open Shorter’s face usually was, Ash started thinking otherwise. Even now, Shorter didn’t look away from his roommate (and friend), dark eyes staring right back into the striking green ones before the latter blinked and finally looked away. This was the first time someone implied that they were friends…and hadn’t made a move on him seconds after. Ash didn’t know what to think, didn’t know what to do or how to respond, so the silence went on for a solid minute as he desperately tried to wrap his head around the current situation.

“ _Oh_ ,” He mumbled eventually.

“I mean…I _thought_ we were friends,” The other boy murmured out-loud, rubbing at his hands nervously. “I consider you my friend, Ash…we had our problems when you first arrived, but we stuck together. And you’re a cool guy, and us cool guys have to stick together—right?”

Ash shrugged. He wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. Through his moodiness and nightmares and attitude, he had somehow…made a friend? A _real_ friend who didn’t want him for sex? A friend he could count on for support and humor? A guy who would stay by his side without question? Didn’t that only happen in the movies?

“Alright, so…we’re _almost_ friends, then.” Shorter concluded, popping up from his seat. “I’ve gotta go talk to Nadia. See you in an hour, and try _not_ to get in trouble, okay, dude?”

Ash forcibly held his right hand down and allowed Shorter to ruffle up his hair like friends do, watching him skip down the hallway cheerfully like a little kid; _he’s totally going to put a move on me_ , Ash thought, face turning into another scowl as he sat up himself. _No way he just wants to be my friend. He’s probably a closeted homo just waiting for his turn to use me…although he doesn’t seem the type…_

_“You. You’re the friend.”_

The boy sighed deeply before pulling himself up, following other inmates down the hall to the activities room where you could peer through the window into the visiting room and watch people talk; Ash usually did it to spy on others, to get their secrets based on which relative visited them, but today he watched no one other than Shorter Wong. He could care less about the grandmothers and disappointed mothers visiting their children—all his interest locked onto the interactions between Nadia and her younger brother, the boy she raised through her own adolescence after the death of their parents. Ash remained leaning casually on the wall right next to the window in hopes of reading their lips, blurring out the world around them as Shorter ran through a herd of people in order to throw his arms around Nadia in a loving embrace.

“Nadia!!!”

“Hey, little bro.”

“Ha! Little? I’m way taller than you, sis!” Shorter laughed as they pulled away. “Your little bro has muscles, now.”

“Good, because I’m going to beat your ass when you get out of here.”

“ _Nadiaaaa_ , don’t be like that!”

Nadia Wong was a thin, beautiful young Chinese woman with short cropped hair and narrowed, sultry eyes; many of the other boys snuck glances at her when they walked by, but knowing Shorter’s protectiveness over her, they dared not stare for long. The bickering siblings sat down at an empty table, Ash’s lynx eyes watching their every move—people who were kind to their relatives weren’t always so with other people; he knew that first-hand. The only exception was his brother Griffin, who was too soft on everyone, too light-hearted to accuse anyone of evil…Ash shook that thought away, feeling too many emotions for one day.

“So how are you, Nadia?! Any boyfriends or fiancés I should know about?!” Shorter questioned eagerly.

“If there was, I wouldn’t tell you,” Nadia Wong replied smoothly, though there was a small smile on her lips. She had always been caring to her only sibling, despite the trouble he got into. Shorter released a relieved breath. “What about you? How are things here?”

“Ah, not too shabby…I got a new roommate a few months back, though.”

“Oh?” The thinner of the siblings replied nervously. “Do you…do you two get along?”

“Weeeeellll…” Shorter contemplated, rubbing the back of his head. “At first we didn’t, but I think we’re friends now.”

“Meaning?”

“Can I have some goodies, first? I’m starving from lack of diverse food choices in here!”

Nadia sighed and took out her basket of goodies including various types of Chinese food and candy, much to the delight of her childish brother; Ash watched in stride, looking for any sign of perversion within Shorter as he stuffed rice and duck in his face. He didn’t see any of the same expressions Dino or Fox had on whenever they were near him—it was starting to frustrate the lynx, confusing him even further on the touchy subject of “friends.”

“You’ve had your meal, now tell me about your roommate.” Nadia continued sometime later. Shorter immediately slowed his chewing. “What’s his name?”

“…Ash.” Her brother answered slowly. “Ash Lynx. That’s just a nickname, actually, but it suits him well.”

“He’s around your age? What does he look like?”

“He’s probably around here somewhere,” Shorter said, peering over his shoulder. “I bet h—oh. There he is.”

“Which one?” Nadia questioned while peering around her sibling.

“The blonde kid right up against the glass pretending he’s not watching us.”

Ash glanced away when he saw Nadia look at him, pretending to be interested in the posters on the wall opposite him. Shorter chuckled under his breath and turned back to his sister, suddenly uneasy to be talking about his roommate; Ash had that affect on people. Even tough people like Shorter feared him, if only a tiny bit.

“He seems…I don’t know…mysterious?” Nadia suggested.

“Hell yeah. I’ve been rooming with him for months, now, and I’ve only seen him laugh once. He’s _totally_ untamable. That’s where he gets his nickname from.”

“Ash Lynx, hm? …Well…do you two get along, then? Or are you constantly picking fights like I told you _not_ to do?” The elder sister asked darkly.

“I haven’t been picking any fights, I swear!” Shorter claimed, though it was partly a lie. “I only defend Ash’s sorry ass when he gets himself into trouble!”

“So he’s negatively influencing you, that’s what you’re saying?”

“No, I—I mean…yeah, I get mixed into a lot of stuff with him, but I’m trying to be his friend; I can’t just abandon him when the going gets tough. We actually get along really well when he isn’t acting so stubborn…it’s just hard to know what he’s thinking sometimes. He’s been through some horrible stuff.”

“Like what?” Nadia tried to clarify.

Shorter set his chopsticks down and glanced around the room, ensuring none of the other boys were listening in; Ash was looking at them again, but Shorter wasn’t facing his way, so he had no way of telling what exactly he was saying. The Chinaman didn’t want any of the guys hearing his theories and using them against poor Ash—Nadia leaned further over the table as her brother did, listening intently as Shorter whispered across.

“From what I’ve gathered over the last few months…I’m pretty sure he was in some kind of child sex ring before being thrown in here,” He explained quietly. “It sickens me to think about, but he has these horrible nightmares almost every night, and shortly after we first met, someone sent an _assassin_ in here to kill him—long story short, he _slept_ with another inmate to force the assassin to make a move. Ash…honestly, he’s got some _seriously_ fucked-up issues. Not that it’s his fault, but you know…” Shorter sighed quickly, pushing away the images of Ash being used and abused. “I like the kid. He’s tougher than nails and actually pretty funny when he isn’t so stressed out; no matter how much he gets us in trouble, he just draws me in, you know, Nadia?”

When Shorter broke out of his trance and glanced up at his sister, he was puzzled to find her expression void of emotion, mouth hanging open.

“What?” Her brother asked suspiciously. “What is it?”

“Um…Shorter…” She trailed off slowly. “Is this your way of telling me you’re… _gay_?”

“WHAT?!”

Several of the guards (And Ash) looked over at Shorter in alarm as he jumped up from the table with shock.

“NO! _Jeez_ , Nadia!!!”

“Well _sorry_ , you were speaking in code and I wasn’t sure what you were getting at!”

“ _Me_ , _gay_? …Jeez,” Shorter hissed as he slowly sat back down. “Get your head screwed on straight, sis. Do you really think someone with biceps like these is _gay_?”

“The more you deny it, the more I think so, yes,” Nadia teased back.

“Let’s get back on subject, okay? Ash is my friend. He’s the only one I’ve made but that counts for something, right?”

“I guess…but…you said there was an _assassin_ in the school?” She repeated seriously, leaning closer again. “I thought…I thought that didn’t happen in places like this.”

“Reform school is only different from prison because of the outfits,” Shorter replied thoughtfully, digging back into his food. “Orange jumpsuits don’t suit everyone else like they would to me, so we get to wear normal clothes. Speaking of which, did you bring me some more shirts?”

Nadia allowed the conversation topic to be swayed, but Ash could see the concern and worry on her expression even as she and Shorter spoke of other things; he was content to watch the pair laugh and interact, swapping stories and exchanging gifts happily. The skinny blonde boy caught Nadia looking at him a few times, and he wondered if Shorter had been talking about him—if he had, Ash could only hope he wasn’t saying the nasty things. Why did he hope that, Ash wondered? What did he care about Nadia’s or Shorter’s opinions? He didn’t. Right?

After a long hour and a half full of smiles and laughs, Nadia and the visitors had to leave, but not before she gave her younger brother a long hug, wishing him well until the next time they got to see each other. Ash wondered what low reassurances they whispered to each other during the hug; Shorter spoke more than Nadia during this time, and Ash was able to lip-read an “I’m sorry” and several “I love you’s” just before they pulled away. Nadia wasn’t close to tears as she followed the other visitors out, but Ash could tell she was feeling emotional from the sad way she waved goodbye to her brother.

When Shorter began to solemnly gather the gifts his sister brought, Ash scurried out of the activities room and hurried back to their room, hoping their previous conversation on friendship wouldn’t be brought back up, because he still didn’t have any theories on why Shorter would make something like that up. He felt more confused than ever before as he watched his roomie from where he laid on the top bunk, ignoring the strange warmth sensation that erupted when Shorter smiled at him in greeting, holding up his winnings from the session.

“Look what Nadia brought me, Ash! _Chinese candy!_ ”

Ash caught the bundle of candy and investigated it silently as Shorter sorted through his belongings, tossing the pile onto his bed for a full investigation. His roommate popped one of the candies in his mouth and stuck several more underneath his pillow before throwing it back under, leaving his head dangling so he could see what all Shorter got; there were some new plain t-shirts along with some new (hole-less) jeans, Chinese cookies, a few letters, some socks and underwear, a neon green pair of sunglasses and…

“Nadia,” Shorter sighed dramatically, holding up three nudie magazines in the air like they had heaven’s glow around them. “You are going down in history as the best big sister _ever_.”

Ash snickered at his roommate’s joy and watched as Shorter danced around with the pictures for a while before sighing heavily and collapsing onto his mattress; despite his energy over the gifts, the Chinaman was quieter than usual. Under normal circumstances he would have interrogated Ash on why he was staring at them the entire time, but right now, he was acting suspiciously somber.

“Man…I really miss Nadia,” He finally said, mostly talking to himself even as Ash continued to peer down from above. “I bet she’s lonely without me. You know, when I first got sentenced here, I was only mad because I thought it would be a waste of my time—but…after the trial, when I turned around and saw Nadia crying in the crowd…I guess it finally hit me that I wasn’t the only one suffering because of my mistakes. You know?”

Ash didn’t nod, but Shorter knew he understood.

“Sorry, I’m getting sappy. I just can’t help but feel bad, though; we’ve only got each other, now, and it sucks that I can’t be out there helping her like she helped me. Here she is giving me _nude magazines_ and all I can give her is a postcard from a boys’ reform school,” Shorter scoffed in disgust. “Some grateful brother I am.”

The taller boy covered his face with his arm, going quiet as degrading thoughts took over his mind; Ash watched in silence, knowing what Shorter was going through despite not seeing his brother in many years. He really missed Griffin. Usually he was the only person Ash could ever trust with anything…he understood how Shorter must have felt, guilty over his immature mistakes that left Nadia all alone…they had more in common than the lynx originally thought. Something clicked in Ash’s mind as he hung over the mattress, watching Shorter sigh deeply and attempt to wipe the guilt off his expression.

_Shorter Wong. Brother of Nadia Wong. Shorter Wong defended me when Arthur sent an assassin. We fought and made-up. He’s been friendly to me since then. He shuts people up when they harass me. He tells people to leave me alone. He fights beside me when we get in tussles. He doesn’t ask for sex. He offers to be my friend and tells me about his life. He doesn’t call me out on my past._

_Shorter gives me candy. Really delicious candy._

Mind made up, almost against his better judgement, Ash hopped down from his mattress and stood in the middle of their cell with his right hand held out towards the other boy. Shorter raised an eyebrow when he looked over, glancing between the hand and Ash’s unreadable expression.

“Um…you want more candy or something?”

“Get up.”

“Alright…” Shorter said slowly, standing in front of Ash with his guard up. “What’s this all about?”

“Shake my hand.”

The Chinese punk’s expression turned to one of confusion. Ash gritted his teeth to keep from lashing out—he was really going to make him say it out-loud, wasn’t he?

“You said we’re friends, right?” The blonde recalled with a scowl. “Shake my hand and prove it to me.”

Shorter hesitated for only a second before slowly bringing his hand up and grabbing onto his roommate’s, shaking it firmly, but not roughly. Their grip was so equal it made Ash’s heart pound with excitement. So he had made the right choice after all…

“There,” Ash nodded, releasing his grip. “Friends.”

Ash jolted with surprise when Shorter’s large arms found their way around his own, pulling him into a tight, bone-crushing hug as the other boy laughed happily.

“My friend Ash Lynx!” Shorter cheered in a girly tone. “This is a dream come true!”

“Shut up! Put me down, you Asian jerk!”

Shorter obeyed after one last squeeze, and as he set Ash down he was delighted to witness, for only the second time since gaining a new roomie, the bright, innocent smile of the lynx kitten. Those thin cheeks were spread wide, revealing a set of perfect teeth directed at Shorter himself, which he was proud to realize. Ash shoved his arm before climbing back to his top bunk for security (and so he could hide under his blanket), content to listen to the Chinaman’s laughs of happiness. A few other boys shouted for him to shut the hell up, but Shorter ignored them in favor of dancing around the room, singing about his nudie mags and his new friend Ash Lynx.

 

For the first time since entering reform school, Ash didn’t have any nightmares.

 

Shorter was overjoyed to be officially friends with his roommate, and the entire reform school noticed a change in attitude between the two boys; the guards were concerned by the attachment, and the other kids began avoiding the pair if they were roaming the halls together. Ash enjoyed their fear greatly, but most of all, he enjoyed having a friend. The concept was still new to him, but he had seen enough cartoons in the activity center to catch onto a few symptoms; firstly, Shorter now sat beside Ash when they ate lunch together. They did this before, too, but now Shorter didn’t hesitate to start a conversation or pick food off Ash’s plate when he was done—they were starting to become very comfortable in each other’s presence. The second new routine Ash noticed was when everyone headed to the showers for their daily washing: maybe Shorter had done this before without the attractive blonde noticing, but this time he saw, witnessed Shorter’s threats first-hand when several of the boys stared at his naked body without shame as they headed to a few empty showers. One of the creepier guys whistled at Ash, and just as he turned around to glare at the bastard, Shorter was already on it.

“Keep your fucking eyes to yourself, filthy mutt.”

The showers weren’t the only times the Chinaman stood up for Ash. He defended him when another boy framed him for stealing, he defended him when one of the teachers accused him of cheating (Ash was the smartest fucking person at the entire place—why the hell would he cheat?), and he defended him when other boys harassed him about his past when they were hanging in the yard. Ash was quickly learning that friendship meant more than just people who hung out together and were comfortable with silence: he learned that it meant laughing with each other, making inside jokes with each other, being strong next to the other and making sure neither was failing to live up to their potential. Ash knew Shorter was serious about being his friend when he offered one of his nudie mags to him as a birthday present—that was also the day Ash realized he could _continue_ to be friends with Shorter, because the amount of love that kid had for his naked ladies was astounding, and if he was offering one of his most precious artifacts to Ash…

_He must really like me._

Shorter Wong and Ash Lynx, the seemingly untamable beast of Manhattan became almost as much an item as the soap opera couple. While Ash felt more untouchable than ever before with someone by his side, there were a few downsides to this new relationship because of misunderstandings by other ignorant juveniles. One of those dumbasses strolled up to Ash when he was hanging in the yard alone, as Shorter was in class and there wasn’t much else to do; Ash was sunbathing on a bench quietly, letting the warm sun burn against his pale skin until a dark shadow pushed the sensation away. Irritated, he peeled open his eyes and looked up to see who dared interrupt his alone time.

“Hey there, pretty boy,” Palo from cell three grinned above him. “Out for a little tanning session?”

Palo was a tall Mexican-American who was sentenced to reform school for beating-up one of his teachers who gave him an F. Ash didn’t fear him and knew what he was after right away; despite his new friendship with Shorter, who didn’t want sex from him, the lynx still didn’t trust easily, though he decided to entertain Palo by hearing his proposition. He sat up slowly, running a hand through his hair cheekily before peering up at the boy with half-open eyes.

“Mm…I was hoping to soak my entire body in oil to help it along, but there’s too many rules at this place,” Ash sighed sadly. He ran a finger across the warm skin of his neck. “Would you care to join me?”

“Maybe another day,” Palo replied, licking his lips hungrily. He shuffled closer to the bench, his crotch almost eye-level with Ash’s face by now. “I see you and the ching-chong fag have been hanging out a lot lately…he gettin’ something I’m not?”

Ash was again surprised by the fire that lit in his stomach after hearing the racial slur directed at Shorter; he managed to compose himself, but made up his mind on the subject of beating Palo’s ass to a pulp. What right did this uneducated steroid-using jerkoff have to be throwing racial insults around?

“Oh _honey_ …I would never give him anything,” The seductive blonde giggled. “Why would I, when I could give it all to you?”

Palo’s disgusting little eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets when Ash teasingly ran a finger on the inner-half of his thigh muscle. Some other boys were starting to look over in concern, a few smart enough to know when the wild lynx was on the prowl for a victim. Others began betting.

“$20 on Ash.”

“Dude, you are _so_ on. Palo outweighs him by fifty pounds!”

“I’ll take a piece of that action.”

“Why don’t we, um…take this to my cell,” Palo mumbled. Ash almost scoffed. Was he trying to be cool or some shit? “Then we can have a bit more… _privacy_.”

Ash held out his hand with a slight tilt, offering it freely.

“Whatever you say, _darling_.”

Palo smirked through his flushed cheeks, reaching out to take Ash’s hand—the second he did, the crazed cat grabbed his forearm and _heaved_ the larger boy into the air, sending him crashing down on the bench Ash had been sitting on not hardly a second before. A crowd gathered immediately, yelling and cheering and preventing the guards from seeing what was going on; Palo got up rather quickly, and Ash was pleased, because that meant this would be a decent workout for him.

“You fucking faggot!” He roared, pointing accusingly at the blonde while brushing off the dirt from his clothes. “Just wait till I get my hands on you—”

“What, so you can finish yourself off after one minute?” Ash almost laughed. “I thought you’d at least last _two_ , Palo.”

“Kick his ass, Palo!!!”

“Come on, Ash, get him!!!”

Palo charged at the smaller boy with swinging fists, only to be tripped and kicked on his front side again; Ash went after him immediately, meaning to strangle the bastard with his own t-shirt, but he overestimated Palo’s strength and was thrown backwards. He got up faster, though, and stood in a defensive stance until another idea occurred to him. Blanca taught him a special move for quickly finishing an opponent, but he didn’t know if he was strong enough to do it yet…

“Can’t keep your hands off me, huh, slut?” Palo laughed. “You’d think you’d be used to bottoming by now, after being roomies with Shorter—”

Ash kicked Palo’s jaw so hard it sent him stumbling to the side, and although his eyes were dazed, he came back for more. When Ash went to kick again, Palo managed a good grab, snatching onto the lynx’s back paw tightly; instead of breaking his leg like Ash would have done, Palo threw him forward, sending him crashing into the dirt _hard_. The solid ground made his brain shake momentarily, and as he began turning back to face Palo, he saw the Mexican lowering a leg back to deliver a powerful kick. It went back so far Ash could hardly see it, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to stand fast enou—

 

_BOOM!_

 

Out of nowhere, a familiar pair of sneakers shot through the air, crashing into Palo’s shoulder and shooting him a good four feet away, barreling into an unsuspecting crowd of betters.

“Shorter!”

Ash gazed up in surprise at his friend, too shocked to do anything but gape at the grinning face of his roomie.

“I can’t leave you alone for one hour, can I?”

“I…guess not.”

Shorter offered him a hand, just like Ash had done weeks before, and he didn’t hesitate before grabbing it and allowing himself to be pulled onto his feet. Palo wasn’t helped by anyone, preferring to lie on the ground in agony as he held his shoulder; Ash wanted to finish him off, but Shorter’s work had been thorough—it didn’t look like the horny bastard would be getting up anytime soon.

“You okay?” Shorter asked, expression turning to concern as he looked over Ash’s dirty outfit. “No broken bones?”

“Fine.”

“Thank goodness. So…what made you go ape-shit this time?”

There could have been a lot of answers to that question. He could have said Palo was sexually harassing him. He could have said he made sexual innuendos about he and Shorter’s relationship. He could have said Palo interrupted his sun bathing. He could have said a lot of things, but as the blonde boy stared at Shorter’s concerned face, only one reply came to mind.

“He insulted you.”

“Eh?”

“He said some racial slurs and I had to give him hell for it,” Ash shrugged.

“Oh…really?” Shorter replied with awe. “Um…well, thank—”

“Break it up, break it up!” A guard yelled, interrupting their conversation. “What’s going on here?!”

None of the boys said a word. Palo groaned from his spot on the ground. Ash decided he wanted some alone time in the isolation cell and surrendered with another shrug.

“Palo attacked me. I kicked his ass.”

“What about him?” The guard asked, narrowing his eyes at Shorter.

“He just got here. He didn’t d—”

“I kicked Palo’s ass, too.” Shorter said with a grin, throwing an arm around Ash’s shoulder. “We’re all guilty, here.”

“…Alright,” The guard sighed deeply. “You three, come with me. The rest of you get to class.”

Ash and Shorter snickered all the way to the isolation cells as Palo was sent to the infirmary before his sentence; Ash only wished he could have done something for his balls before he went away. He dreamed about kicking them with pointy shoes or throwing rocks at them…these were the thoughts he was going to amuse himself with during his isolation time.

“In you go,” A guard motioned.

“Don’t worry, Ash,” Shorter smiled brightly as he was pushed into the first isolation cell. “I’ll sing to you for the next four hours so you don’t feel so alone!”

“Please don’t. We shouldn’t make the guards suffer.”

Shorter was still laughing even after he was locked inside. Ash wouldn’t admit it, but he was laughing, too, once he was in a dark corner where no one could see him. On hour three of Shorter’s serenade in the cell next to his, the lynx could admit something to himself after months of thought:

 

“I really like Shorter, too.”

~~~-~~~

Reform school didn’t last forever. Some kids grew out of the age range, others escaped, others were bailed out by their strict parents who wanted to teach them a lesson by throwing them out in the real world again; and then there were boys like Shorter Wong, who finished his sentenced time without too much trouble and were ready to be released back into society. Ash didn’t understand the depth of this leave until a week before, when Shorter began packing his things and growing his hair back out so he could get a mohawk; it only hit him when they were sitting at lunch together, laughing about something or other, that at this time next week…Shorter wouldn’t be there. Wouldn’t be there to jokingly pick things off Ash’s plate, wouldn’t be there to ease the tension with confidence and a good giggle…Ash would be alone. Just like before. It wasn’t like he couldn’t handle being alone—it was just that he knew how deep friendship went, and having that kind sensation leave would be like a bullet to the heart. Ash thought he was being dramatic at first, but the more he contemplated, the more he realized he would miss Shorter. He would miss his only ally, the only guy who didn’t want to use his body like a toy…

Yeah. Ash really wasn’t taking it all that well. But this was supposed to be a happy day, and he was honestly happy for Shorter—at some point the night before he decided it was selfish of him to act like such a whiney baby, and by the next morning, Shorter was happy to see his roomie in a good mood.

“Ahh, I hate to say it, but I’m gunna miss this place!” Shorter said as he grabbed his duffel bag. “I won’t miss the food or the lack of freedom or the classes or the drama, but I’ll miss some things!”

“Like what,” Ash huffed beside him. “The isolation cell? The awkward shower sessions?”

“Well I was going to say I’ll miss _you_ , but I didn’t want you to be uncomfortable,” The Chinaman pouted, turning his nose up as they exited their shared cell. “I’m considerate like that.”

“I’m going to miss you,” His friend admitted quietly. They began walking down the abandoned hallway side by side, closer than Ash ever would have imagined. “I’ll miss you a lot, actually…”

“Yeah?” Shorter smiled to himself. “Well, good. I’m glad. Maybe next time we meet we’ll be wearing orange jumpsuits, eh?”

“We better meet before then,” Ash snapped back, though there was no mean intent in the words. “If I end-up in jail it better be because I was saving your sorry ass from someone.”

“A-Ash…” The taller boy replied in a croak, pretending to tear up as he turned to his friend. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me!”

“Shut it. I’m nice to you all the time.”

“Sure, sure!”

No one bothered the pair the entire trip towards the reform school official exit, which Ash was a bit disappointed in; he kind of hoped they could team up against some bastard dude for old time’s sake. Shorter assured him they would have plenty more opportunities when Ash got out to have some fun. The lynx believed him heart and soul, and even went so far as to smile at the memory, thinking Shorter couldn’t see. Nadia was waiting for her brother down the road—she would take him back home to Chinatown, where the young punk would retake his claim on the gangs there, despite being fresh off a prison meant to change his ways. He would celebrate the arrival of his new ally and bestie Ash Lynx, combining their groups as one solid wall; the friends didn’t know this, of course, but they were making their own mental maps of their future together. Ash allowed his hope to linger between the lines of disappointment and success, picturing he and Shorter years later, the kings of Manhattan, protecting their friends from the harms of evil.

One day, Ash would be strong enough to live-out his own visions.

They approached the final door that would lead outside. A guard waited to escort Shorter Wong to his sister’s car, standing only a few feet away, though his presence went unnoticed by the two boys who stopped in the middle of the hall to face each other. It wasn’t goodbye, per say; it was more of a see-you-later. Still, Ash felt a sting of pain inside his chest, remembering how much agony would return to his mind when Shorter was really gone. No one to wake him from his nightmares and keep them a secret between them. No one to hang out in the yard with. No one to sit and have lunch with…

 

_I really am softhearted, aren’t I?_

“Shorter,” Ash addressed with those serious emerald eyes Shorter had grown so accustomed to. “…Let’s meet before we have to wear orange together. Let’s be friends when I get out. Okay?”

Ash Lynx had never been so relieved to see Shorter’s shit-eating grin. The Chinaman stuck his hand out, and they did their special handshake, smiling as they finished.

“You got it, Ash. But I think I’m gunna wear some orange when I get out—orange is the new black, after all!”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm all for gay ships but as a fellow creator I get that Shorter’s heterosexual tendencies are how he and Ash are so close! I don't really feel a homo vibe from Shorter anyway...although that doesn't stop me from coming up with another totally gay fic of he and Eiji...oopsie! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed and felt a real understanding of why Shorter and Ash are (cough* were *cough) best friends!


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